The Hunt For Memories
by Ash Carter
Summary: AU/Canon-ish. The tale of an amnesiac priestess, a mistaken identity, and lost souls began on the fateful day she forgot everything, because waking up in a forest, remembering nothing but only glimpses of your seemingly past, is bound to shock you... but not her. Together with the hanyou, Inuyasha, she embarks on a journey to recover what she had lost. Pending title & summary.


**Disclaimer: **I don't and never will own Inuyasha. Thank the genius mind of Rumiko Takahashi for making this! This will be the first and last disclaimer for this story.

This idea is actually more of a spur of the moment. I really can't remember how it came about but I'm sure that it was around the time when I was rereading the manga. I won't really say nothing much as of now, so enjoy the read and let's all go on with life.

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**Memory I – Her and Him**

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She could hear the rustling of leaves above her. The smell of dirt was wafting through her nose, the slight breeze was kissing her skin, and the one thing that really made her open her eyes was the whispered words of someone.

"Wake up," it said. She couldn't really determine whether it was a woman or a man. The person spoke again. "Please wake up."

"Who are you?" she heard her own voice, rasp and weak. She slowly opened her eyes, only to close it again due to the sudden brightness. "Where am I?"

"Good, you're awake, I thought you were dead."

The girl sat up and looked around her, failing to notice that the owner of the voice was not in sight. She was in a forest—or more like a clearing in a forest. She could see a well behind her and resting her eyes in front of her, she could see… a sleeping man shot down in a tree?

"Are those dog ears?" she asked, somehow knowing that the voice would answer.

"Yes," was the simple reply she got.

She really didn't mind the short answer, as she stood up and started walking in the man's direction. She noticed a few things when she was nearing him: firstly, he was not a man, rather he was a _boy,_ practically close to her age; secondly, he looked peaceful, that disturbing him would seem sacrilege. "What's his name?"

The voice did not answer her, but she paid no mind to it. Maybe it also didn't know. She was standing right in front of the boy now. He was wearing a red robe, not really close to the clothes she was wearing, but more of it being specially made just for him. The ears she saw from afar looked tempting to the touch. And so she did the latter.

"Don't," came the calm voice from before, "you might wake him up."

"He won't. Don't worry," she said, proceeding to rub the white appendages. "They're soft."

"I would imagine so."

As if the girl remembered something, she opened her mouth to ask the voice, "Your name? I don't know your name."

Before the voice could answer her, arrows were suddenly shot around them. The girl could only panic for a while before calmness surrounded her. "Who are they?" she whispered.

"They must be villagers. It seems you are discovered."

"Will I have to come with them?"

"Yes, to clear the misunderstandings that will surely happen."

"We must go then."

The girl climbed down the tree, completely leaving the obviously not human boy, and walked to the villagers' way. When she got to them, her hands were promptly tied up and as she wasn't expecting this, she threw a fit befitting a street girl. The villagers ignored her and assisted her in walking to the direction of their village. Seeing that they won't really harm her, she stopped her ranting and calmly followed them, wisely shutting her mouth and stopped talking to the voice—though she knew that it was following her. She could feel it. She only hoped that someone in the village could tell her where she was.

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He could feel the wind swaying his hair in the air, gently caressing his face. How long had it been since he felt it? He thought he was dead, sealed to a tree by a priestess, and would remain that way forever, but when the wind caught a strange but sweet scent to his nose, his senses were suddenly awaken. Though they were still a bit dulled, he could hear shuffling in the grass below and a soft murmur from afar.

He figured that whoever it was, was nearing him, as the soft padding stopped just right in front of him. He willed himself to open his eyes, but no matter how much he tried, he couldn't. His body was not fully awakened as he had thought. He was pondering on these things when he heard the person speak.

"He won't. Don't worry," so she was a woman. From the soft rustling of clothes, he knew that the woman was right _in front_ of him, seeming to reach something—probably his ears. His guess was proven true when he felt her soft hands on them. "They're soft," he heard her mutter once again.

Was the girl simply talking to herself, or was there someone else with her? "Your name? I don't know your name," was she asking him perhaps? But that was impossible, wasn't it? The girl clearly didn't know that he had awakened now, did she?

Before he could process all the things that were happening, he faintly heard the whizzing of something coming to their direction. And in less than a minute, the area around him—or them, as the girl was still rubbing his ears—was hit. He figured that it must have been arrows. The dull was slowly fading; he smelled panic coming from the girl, but it lasted for only a moment, until it was gone and replaced by something else he couldn't quite comprehend.

He heard her ask. "Who are they?"

Expecting someone to answer, he waited for a sound, a voice, or something, but none came. Still, he heard the girl's another question. "Will I have to come with them?"

Few seconds passed by but no voice once again. Was this girl nuts? "We must go then."

We? So she really was with someone... then why couldn't he hear or smell this companion? Or maybe the girl was really going insane.

The warmth he was feeling up to now was suddenly replaced by coldness when said girl got down and let the cold breeze enveloped him. She must be going to the villagers, who obviously were the ones responsible for the arrows. He heard ropes being tied and some childish complaints coming from the girl. The last thing he heard, before he was somehow dragged to sleep once again, was the fading sound of footsteps.

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"She was in Inuyasha's forest, you say?" an old woman with an eye patch asked the villagers who brought the strange girl in a strange kimono. "Let me see 'ye face, lass."

"_She looks creepy but kind at the same time,"_ she thought, glancing in a certain direction. The old woman tilted her head right and left a few times before she heard her gasp.

"She must've seen someone in you," the voice from before said to her when she painted a questioning look on her face. She didn't say anything, for fear that the people might think her possessed, but waited for whatever the old priestess would say.

"You look just like Kikyo-onee-sama," the priestess said, shock still evident in her voice.

"Kikyo?" the girl asked, curious of who it could be. "I am not her, am I?"

"Where did you come from, girl?" the old woman asked her, still observing her face. "Your clothes tell me that you came from a place far away, from a rich family perhaps."

"I don't know, really. I woke up, finding myself in the forest. Could you tell me where I am?"

"You're in a village in Musashi Province, child. You were just in Inuyasha's forest. Now, tell me 'ye name."

"My name?" she asked, thinking of a name that she could give the old priestess, searching her brain for any. Finding nothing and remembering nothing of any name, she answered. "I can't remember."

Now, just like before, the old priestess this time was interrupted by a lady centipede demon that came barreling down on the village. It was starting to get dark, seeing as it was near twilight when the girl woke up in the forest, and they had to deal with this demon before everyone was killed.

The girl didn't think twice about helping the villagers. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew she had to do something, as the demon appeared to be looking for her. She didn't know how she knew of it; she just could feel it in her body. "Where is the safe place to rid this demon?" asked she.

"The dry well. We must get her there," the priestess answered.

"Where is it?"

"Back in the forest, child. You should stay here. It is dangerous," the old woman answered, turning to the villagers.

Before the girl could disagree with the old priestess, the centipede demon growled. "Give me the Shikon shard!" she said, knocking everything in her way. "Girl, give me the shard!"

The young woman was confused and turned to the priestess's direction when she was addressed. "You have a shard with 'ye, child?" she could read the shock in her wrinkled face. "'Ye mustn't let the demon have it."

She frowned at the old woman. "I don't know if I have it or not, but we have to get this demon away from the village, right? The well is in that forest where those lights are coming from, correct?"

The priestess looked at her again, appearing more intrigued of this stranger. The girl was looking at her, waiting for confirmation, but she could see in her eyes that she would take off whether she agreed or not. So she nodded her head. As soon as the strange girl had run, the centipede took after her, chasing and shouting, trying to catch up. From the priestess' location, she could see the girl's lips moving, as if talking to someone. She ignored it and shook her head, turning around to address the villagers. "Let's follow her before she is killed."

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He felt it by the time the wind carried the scent from earlier. His pulse was beating, his senses were sharper, and he could feel his strength returning. He had awakened completely.

He opened his eyes and took a sniff of his surroundings. He could smell dirt, blood—though it was faint—and the smell of the girl from earlier on his clothes—or at least that was what he thought. His ears twitched when he heard someone running towards his direction. Luckily for him, the wind was coming in the same direction and was carrying the scents. There were two: the girl's scent and a nasty demon.

"Am I going to be alive after this?" his ear twitched more in recognition. "I don't even know your name."

Like when he was half-awake, he heard no one answering the girl. He waited for a few more seconds, in case he had missed the reply, which was almost next to impossible as he had great hearing. Could this girl really be crazy? It would be a pity if she really were.

Instead of hearing another person's voice, he heard instead the shout of an angry and desperate demon. "Give me the Shikon shard!"

Shikon shard? Was the demon talking about the Shikon no Tama? If she was, then why was the demon talking about a shard? Had something happened to it while he was sealed? More importantly, how long had it been since he was pinned to the tree?

"What should I do to get rid of her?" he heard again. There was a long pause, and for the third time that day, he didn't hear an answer until the girl spoke. "Pull out the arrow pinning him? Are you sure that's a good idea?"

At this time, the boy opened his eyes and stared at the back of the girl in front of him. She was young—just as he was suspecting her to be—and dangerously familiar, yet different at the same time. Was it possible for a person—or something—to be familiar but not so all at once? She was wearing a purple kimono with intricate designs on them. But looking closely at her attire, he knew that it was not the usual kimono that high-class women wore. It was closer to a priestess's clothes, but also not. No matter, it was not the right time to contemplate on her strange clothes.

He caught the upcoming—and, unfortunately, nasty—scent of the demon. He knew he had to do at least something to save the girl—and his still unmovable body—from it. So, he did the thing he was good at: asking—more like insulting—her of a way to handle the coming demon.

"Hey, wench," he called. Said girl looked up at him, and for a moment, he was rooted to his position—if that was at all possible, seeing that he was, at this moment, literally rooted. "Don't you know of any way to kill that demon? Because if you don't, your sorry life will be wiped off of this earth in a few seconds."

The girl frowned at him before turning her head to the side. He followed her gaze and saw nothing. "There's no other choice?" she asked. He had to wonder if she was talking to him or not, but seeing that she was still looking at her right, it became his turn to frown. "Is that the only way?"

He tried sniffing the air and focused on the girl's perimeter only. There wasn't anything unusual in her surroundings, but the person—or if it could even be considered a person—she was talking to was lost on him. Moreover, what was she talking about? Could she be referring to the arrow pinned at him?

His train of thought, however, was cut off by the girl's voice. "Are you strong, dog demon?" she was looking at him with such criticizing eyes that he immediately nodded his head. "Before I free you completely, promise me not to kill anyone, including me, but the centipede demon only."

"Keh. Why would I do that?" he answered, suddenly back to his usual self. He only did this because there was something off about this girl, and he trusted his instincts very much to prove himself right. "You'll be killed anyway if you just stand there."

"That may be true, but I can see that you are not a killer," she said, staring right into his eyes, as if peering at his soul. She turned her head to the same direction as before and addressed the air. "I am correct, am I not, Hitomi?"

"Who are you talking to, wench?"

"Later. I believe I have a promise I needed."

"You do realize that the demon is standing behind you right now, don't you? If you want to live so badly at this time, pull the arrow and free me."

"The villagers are here and they're going to attack."

And right after uttering that statement, he saw the villagers throw spears at the demon with ropes connected to it. They pulled at it and managed to bring down the demon, but even he could tell that it would not last for long. Humans were weaklings after all.

"Stop, child! You mustn't pull out that arrow!" he heard an old woman shout from the villagers' direction. He looked down and saw the girl already climbing to his height. When did she get in here? "You mustn't free Inuyasha!"

Hearing this sparked something inside the boy, now known as Inuyasha. "You blind, Baba? If this girl doesn't pull out this arrow, all of you will die! That demon is accumulating power right now as we speak!"

"Promise me, Inuyasha. Your freedom or also _your _death?" With each word the girl was uttering, she was coming closer—and so was the demon. In fact, the wretched centipede had begun to wrap its body around them, thus squishing the young woman to him. "Will you or will you not?"

Inuyasha was not really a man of his word, but a promise was a promise. "Fine, wench, but only if you get this arrow out." At this acceptance, the girl looked at him and smiled, and once again he was struck, but now he knew why she looked so familiar earlier. And with that certainty, he whispered a name. "Kikyo."

The girl's forehead crinkled, her expression suddenly turning into a frown. "I am not Kikyo. My name is…" and she trailed off, this time her expression changing into one of confusion. Turning to their right, she asked, "Who am I, Hitomi?"

Inuyasha didn't hear anything—not that he was expecting to hear something, anyway—and only watched the girl, but before she could utter another word, the demon tightened its hold on them, after it had successfully thwarted the oncoming arrows in its direction. "Girl, hand me over the shard! You are carrying a big one with you!"

"Kill her, Inuyasha," the girl said to him, right hand poised in the arrow. Inuyasha just smirked and waited for the surge of power. "Don't show any mercy."

"You bet I won't, wench. This will be my first time fighting again after so many years or whatever," right after this reply, the girl's hand made contact with the arrow, and instead of completely pulling it, the arrow just vanished into thin air, as if it wasn't there in the first place.

Inuyasha had felt it, the surge, and the adrenaline rushing through his veins. He was sure that he hadn't felt something like this before, not even when he was fighting demons far stronger than he was. It somehow had excited him. The roots that were wrapped around his body were unmercifully ripped apart, and the girl was, also unmercifully, thrown away, though she landed not far from him and didn't seem like she was injured. "Hey, hag! Your opponent is here!" he shouted when he saw the centipede coming to the girl's way.

The centipede didn't bother to turn in his way and continued in her quest, which would prove her biggest mistake, as Inuyasha was already coming at her. The demon wasn't even able to think twice; the last thing she remembered before her body was ripped in pieces was the strange sight beside the girl. But, of course, she was not going to let this go, seeing that she now knew why said girl had a large part of the jewel with her. And so, she left this world with sealed lips, bringing the secret she had discovered in the last few seconds of her life.

"Keh. Pathetic demon, thinking it could take me on," Inuyasha said, turning to the direction of the girl from before. "Hey, wench, you alright?"

"Yeah. Thanks, Inuyasha," the girl replied, standing up and dusting her kimono. Inuyasha looked at her intently and frowned, appearing to have remembered something he shouldn't have. The girl took notice of this and wasted no time asking, "Is something wrong?"

"Why do you look like Kikyo?" he asked, standing in front of the girl, glowering at her. "Wench, who are you?"

Again, the girl frowned at him, and Inuyasha, for a second, was tempted to apologize to the now almost crying young woman in front of him. He was just about to demand for an answer when he felt a slight breeze touching his body and body alone. A shiver ran down on his spine, stopping him in his action. He looked to his left and right but saw nothing, except for the villagers at his far left, who were too afraid to come close to them.

"_Kagome," _he heard someone whispering. He attuned his nose to the scents around him, but he still smelt nothing different. Could it be possible that he was just imagining things? _"Kagome's her name, not Kikyo."_

"Kagome?" Inuyasha tested the name in his lips, feeling strange. "Hey, wench, is that true?"

The girl, who was now identified as Kagome, looked up at him and stared at his right side. This time, it was his turn to frown—or more like scowl—at the girl. She was looking at something no other person could see once again. He was about to ask her what she was looking at, when he was promptly interrupted by something suddenly tugging at his neck. He looked down and saw rosary beads around the offended body part.

"What the hell is this?!" he shouted, clutching the beads and trying to remove it. "Get the hell this thing off of me!"

"Girl, say the subjugation words immediately!" he faintly heard the same old woman from before shout. He took no notice of this and still tried to get the necklace off.

"Word?" Kagome—he decided that he would call her that—asked and looked back and forth at him and at the old woman. "What should I say? Hitomi, what do you think?"

He didn't even bother to wait for someone to start whispering or talking and just carried on with his already tedious work. But alas, his continuous mission of removing the wretched—his words, not mine—necklace was put in vain when his face finally met solid ground. Apparently, he didn't hear the word Kagome said.

"What in the world just happened?!" he asked, getting up from the ground. "What did you do, bitch?! I promised not to kill you and this is the pay I get?!"

"But all I did was say the word 'sit'," and once again, he unceremoniously made contact with the lovely ground. "Ah, sorry, Inuyasha. I think it's because of that necklace around your neck."

"What?!"

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And so, dear readers, our beloved characters met under such circumstances, where explanations were bound to happen on the following hours of this encounter. This was how her and him met under the full moon, but their story was just starting. Trials were bound to follow them as she would try to retrieve what once she had lost.

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Whoo. I thought I am never gonna finish this! Anyway, the end may be a little bit rushed, but I like it this way, since if I write more, then the chapter will be really long, and I have a policy not to make the first one that long. I don't have any prologue to cover that, so I have to restrain the first chapter!

Anyhow, I hope you like this and will give me your honest feedback by clicking that handsome button over there, and you will get my unwavering love—and hopefully the next chapter by next week. Oh, and if you spot any grammar mistake, don't hesitate to let me know. This piece is still un-edited.

Ciao,

A. Carter


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